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Amazon’s huge warehouse growthDanSmo
Amazon’s mega distribution network is on an epic growth pace, CoStar reports.
What Amazon is building is unprecedented in U.S. commercial real estate, in terms of focusing on creating a collection of industrial buildings that are so large. The Great Pyramid of Giza, which stood as the tallest structure in the world for more than 3,800 years, has a base that can contain about 10 football fields. Amazon’s new mega buildings are typically six times larger.
So goes Amazon’s seemingly relentless effort to open mega-warehouses — ranging from 2 million to over 4 million square feet — all over the country, even in smaller markets, with several dozen more in the pipeline as it fills in its U.S. distribution network. Giants such as Walmart and Target, as well as other traditional retailers, have all been strengthening their logistics networks to fill online orders. But none have been building the backbone of behemoth fulfillment centers that Amazon has over the past few years.
There are unique risks to this building initiative: The structures could turn out to be too large for other businesses to occupy should Amazon’s strategy change, leaving communities with white elephants. And municipalities across the country remain divided on whether these massive structures help their quality of life or threaten to overwhelm them.
Dealing with these concerns is made more difficult by the secretive way Amazon makes real estate decisions, cloaking projects in code names, oftentimes requiring potential partners not to disclose information about them and offering few details. And the company sometimes flat-out cancels projects and moves elsewhere rather than engage with the larger issues.
Before the meteoric rise of online shopping, companies would have some national distribution centers across the country that would feed into regional or local warehouses. Amazon has not only disrupted traditional retailing by letting consumers shop at home, it’s now adopted a very specific industrial strategy to serve its booming e-commerce business by assembling a large collection of enormous, multistory robotic warehouses.
Amazon currently has 62 U.S. warehouses that are 2 million square feet and larger in operation, totaling 166.4 million square feet, according to Montreal-based supply chain and logistics consultant MWPVL International. And there are 39 of those massive fulfillment centers, totaling 121 million square feet, that are either under construction or proposed and pending local approvals, MWPVL said. So even though Amazon recently announced plans to put the brakes on its breakneck U.S. distribution expansion, it still has a substantial pipeline for its mega-warehouses.
Amazon’s aggressive rollout of huge warehouses, a strategy unique to the company, follows a cookie-cutter formula. Its gargantuan warehouses typically have multiple mezzanine levels, or stories, with five levels slated for Niagara. They incorporate Amazon’s state-of-the-art robotics technology. A number of the warehouses are located in secondary and tertiary markets, such as Niagara.
Business for Developers
Industrial developers are benefiting from the extra business from the construction. The roster of developers that have built Amazon mega-warehouses includes well-known names in commercial real estate: Trammell Crow, Prologis, Panattoni Development, Hillwood Development and Seefried Industrial Properties.
One developer, USAA Real Estate, last year had a $2.7 billion bond offering to raise money to complete 13 distribution and fulfillment centers leased to Amazon, including a 2.4 million-square-foot one at 800 Pine Meadow Drive in Pooler, Georgia. S&P Global Ratings appraised that distribution center at $331.5 million.
In some places, residents and officials fear the truck traffic such warehouses will generate or how they will change once-bucolic landscapes and disrupt the environment, which ends up putting the kibosh on the proposed projects. And if Amazon eventually decided to vacate one of these giant sites after occupying them, it could prove difficult to find another industrial tenant for such a huge space, a concern at least one developer has expressed.
But in other markets, Amazon is welcomed with open arms, so the company can look for another municipality in which to build if it isn’t welcome in its first choice. In several states, its mega-warehouses represent landmark developments in terms of size. Amazon Project Sam, a 3.6 million-square-foot distribution facility built by Panattoni, was billed as the single largest real estate project in Tennessee when it opened last year.
Amazon’s $230 million robotic fulfillment center in Suffolk, Virginia, which the company owns, at 3.8 million square feet was described as the second-largest building in the Old Dominion. The 3.85 million-square-foot fulfillment center being developed in Woodburn, Oregon, is touted as one of the largest buildings in the Beaver State’s history. And, at 3.08 million square feet, the $300 million warehouse that Atlanta-based developer JB2 Partners has proposed for Niagara would be the largest project that town has ever seen, as well.
In September, Amazon debuted a 3.8 million-square-foot fulfillment center — the size of 66 football fields — in Wilmington, Delaware, which company officials described then as the largest such facility it had open as of that date. But that one, built on the site of a former General Motors assembly plant, may soon be topped. A 4.06 million-square-foot facility is now under construction at 8900 Merrill Ave. in Ontario, California. Developer Prologis declined to comment on whether the online retailer will be the tenant. Amazon confirmed that it plans to open a large new distribution facility in Ontario later this year, but it declined to provide its address.
However, Amazon has overwhelmingly been the company leasing enormous warehouses — build-to-suit developments — and brokers in the Inland Empire market said the e-tailer was expected to be the occupant on Merrill Avenue in Ontario.
Efforts to get approval for the projects are often cloaked in secrecy, perhaps to help forestall any opposition. When the developer that Amazon is working with files plans for the warehouses with local governments, officials sometimes agree to not disclose details of the projects or the e-commerce company’s involvement.Critics have charged that this process isn’t transparent and doesn’t allow full disclosure to the public.
In Niagara, officials initially declined to identify the tenant for the large warehouse planned for 8995 Lockport Road, on a cornfield adjacent to Niagara Falls International Airport. But last week, Maura Kennedy, an Amazon economic development manager, appeared at a county planning board hearing to acknowledge that the e-commerce company planned to use the five-story facility as a fulfillment center, according to a report in the Buffalo News.
The project is “prototypical” for Amazon and nearly the same as the one originally planned for Grand Island, said John Bancroft, a partner with developer JP2 Partners, according to the Buffalo News report. It would function as a “first-mile operation” where trucks would bring in merchandise that Amazon sells to be sent out to other locations in the company’s logistics network, including “last-mile” sites where the company has its delivery vans.
Like other mega-warehouses, the Niagara project was given a code name that didn’t reveal Amazon’s involvement: Project Fifi. In Wisconsin, the identity of a warehouse occupant — which turned out to be Amazon — was initially kept under wraps, with the project identified as Project Silver Eagle. In Virginia, a planned warehouse was referred to as Project Roxy.
Once they are built, Amazon typically identifies and names its big fulfillment centers with the initial code of the nearest large airport. For example, the Wilmington facility is called MTN1, getting its moniker from Martin State Airport in Maryland.
And when Amazon finally officially announces one of its mega-warehouses, press releases will often only include the property’s first-floor square footage, usually just 650,000 to 850,000 square feet, but not the fact that it’s going to be a multistory building whose total square footage is several times that of the ground floor. That’s information that could immediately trigger alarms for development opponents and neighboring residents.
These mammoth distribution facilities, even in small markets, put Amazon ever closer to shoppers, facilitating quick delivery, according to brokers and logistics analysts. Big logistics hubs located in less densely populated and underdeveloped regions also provide Amazon better prospects to find labor for its warehouses, as well as offering land that is not only available but less pricey than places such as, for example, North Jersey, which is sandwiched between New York City and Philadelphia and near major airports and seaports.
Amazon has been on a binge in terms of expanding its distribution network, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, which accelerated the growth of online shopping. As part of that growth, Amazon has placed some of its mammoth logistics centers near major cities, such as Detroit, but others fall in smaller markets such as Canton, Mississippi; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Suffolk and Henrico, both in Virginia; Shreveport, Louisiana; Liverpool in upstate New York; Papillion, Nebraska; Woodburn, Oregon; Churchill, Pennsylvania; Mount Juliet, Tennessee; Pflugerville, Texas; Arlington, Washington; Pooler and Appling, both in Georgia; and Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, according to CoStar data.
Betting Bigger Is Better
Overall, Amazon was leasing 370.4 million square feet of space for distribution and data centers, and owned 16.7 million square feet of such properties, in North America as of Dec. 31, according to a recent securities filing.
Amazon officials are secretive about their distribution strategy, but a company official offered some guidance on its development plans recently. During a fourth-quarter earnings call on Feb. 3, Amazon Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky said the company intended to “moderate” its industrial growth. What he didn’t discuss is that Amazon already has a lot of giant fulfillment sites in the works.
Some real estate officials are trying to parse out exactly what Olsavsky meant and what the repercussions could be.
“What they said on the earnings call [is] a little bit difficult to interpret, as they said that they were going to slow or reduce their investment,” Peter Baccile, CEO of First Industrial Realty Trust, said during his own company’s recent fourth-quarter earnings call. “As you know, they lease and they buy and they own their own warehouses. As far as market activity goes, we have not seen any drop-off. And the demand today is very, very broad-based.”
However, Amazon has taken the big-is-better approach to the max and has a very specific mega-warehouse strategy, according to Baccile. He told Wall Street analysts that his industrial real estate trust wasn’t interested in doing those kinds of risky projects because it believed at some point Amazon would begin to “rationalize” its space.
“And that’s why we have not chased them to the secondary and tertiary markets,” he said. “And that’s why we don’t own any of their seven stories of [mezzanines], full of robotics, the special-purpose properties. We’ve stuck to our disciplined focus on the coastal markets and delivering property that appeals to a much more broad set of potential tenants.”
It’s true that Amazon isn’t the only company interested in opening larger distribution centers. Big warehouse leases hit a record last year, driven by not only e-commerce but traditional retailers.Walmart, one of the world’s biggest retailers, has opened several U.S. warehouses that are about 1 million square feet, most recently in Olive Branch, Mississippi. And footwear retailer Nike also has some big distribution facilities, including one that’s 2.8 million square feet in Memphis, Tennessee.
Amazon’s Ideal Warehouse
Amazon doesn’t comment in detail about its future plans for distribution development, according to company spokeswoman Lisa Campos. But she offered a broad outlook at what it wants in a warehouse site. “We typically look at each location and what’s available and then determine the best outcome,” the spokeswoman said in an email. “We’ve built a network of modern, hi-tech facilities in towns and cities across the world — all to make sure our customers get what they want, when they want, wherever they are.”
But Ryan Hester, a lead engineer with Amazon’s Global Engineering Services design and construction, offered some insight into its mega-warehouses in a recent post on LinkedIn. He said his first big technical project at Amazon was as the lead in developing a template for a large “Generation 11” robotic facility, at roughly 3.56 million square feet and five
stories. It “created a consolidated, more efficient automated design type,” according to Hester.
Three years later, he gave a tour of an Amazon mega-warehouse, called HOU6, that’s located at 10507 Harlem Road in Richmond, Texas. It fits the template he helped develop: It has 3.7 million square feet and five stories. It debuted last fall and was developed by Trammell Crow. “This building is absolutely incredible and is the most complex end-to-end functional building that I have ever set foot into,” Hester said on LinkedIn.
Warehouse Workers, Truck Drivers
Rob Handfield, a professor of supply chain management at North Carolina State University, said Amazon’s huge facilities in tertiary markets may reflect the company looking for sites where it can not only ship to multiple cities within 24 hours but also find workers. “The thing is Amazon recognizes that there’s a labor shortage,” Handfield said. “Labor is becoming a critical bottleneck right now. They’re saying, ‘Maybe we have to look in parts of the country where there’s not a lot of industry, where there are people who may be looking for jobs and they’re unskilled and we can pay them $18 an hour with benefits and we’ll become a major employer.’”
Ponsen raised the labor issue in regard to truck drivers. “The longer the trucking route, the harder it is for Amazon or its competitors to find drivers willing to traverse them,” he said. “These mega sites help break up the routes truckers are taking to bring goods from one stop in the supply chain to the next. They also give Amazon locations to briefly store huge amounts of inventory before delivering those products into population centers, which tend to have much higher rents for logistics space.” Overall, Handfield said Amazon is seeking a combination of plentiful labor and cheap land that’s not too far from major cities.
David Silverman, a senior director at Fitch Ratings, had a similar take on Amazon’s industrial game plan. “It’s a pretty complex strategy that they have about maximizing fulfillment, distribution, etc., that includes some larger centers that could be farther away from centers of population,” Silverman said. “They can do that, too, for the purposes of finding cost-effective real estate at the size that they want.”
Amazon has to serve a variety of needs with its logistics network, according to Silverman, not only fulfilling orders placed on its website but also providing distribution points of contact with customers when it opens mega-warehouses.
“It could be less to do with that they are necessarily seeing a lot of growth in Colorado Springs or a particular market in Tennessee,” he said. A huge warehouse “could be used for a different kind of element of the strategy, or element of the part of the supply chain, as they are focused on other avenues for getting close to the consumer — for example, their own retail stores or the Kohl’s partnership or the Lockers,” self-service kiosks where shoppers can pick up their packages, or drugstore partnerships.
Olsavsky’s comments during the fourth-quarter earnings call seemed to bear out what Silverman said. “We like the progress we’ve made developing our Amazon logistics capability over the last few years,” Olsavsky told Wall Street analysts. “And we’ve been adding — as we’ve mentioned, we’ve doubled the capacity in the network over the last two years. That is not all just to handle today’s volume. It’s also to handle getting closer to the customer and being able to ship faster. So, we like where we stand. We know there’s work to do on improving our customer service. We like the progress we’re making lately, but we think that future is bright on that dimension.”


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According to the consulting firm McKinsey, the economic impact of the Internet of Things (IoT) could reach USD$11.1 trillion by 2025. Something very big is clearly happening – but what exactly does this mean for the food supply chain and disciplines like food safety? Are opportunities being grasped, or is there more work to be done to turn potential into reality?
Recently, Rentokil Initial commissioned my research firm Quocirca to answer these questions and more.
Key research findings:
The research was designed to gauge the perceptions of the Internet of Things (IoT) across the entire food supply chain. The findings were generated by interviewing 400 people responsible for food hygiene and pest control in Australia, China, the UK and US, covering arable farms, logistics and warehousing, food processing, and retail outlets. The results made for some very interesting findings.
Based on research carried out by Quocirca in October 2016, this report, commissioned by Rentokil Initial, looks at the various areas where the IoT will enable the food supply chain to gain the maximum benefits.
Overall, the research shows that organisations involved in the arable food supply chain have a good awareness of the issues that they will face going forward, especially considering the growing demand for food and the need to reduce food waste.
However, there are gaps in understanding over the types of automated solutions already in use.
This is partially due to the fact that some automated systems are not viewed as IoT systems, such as GPS systems in the truck or in-container monitoring systems. Similarly food processing control systems are not perceived as IoT enabled devices, they are just part and parcel of the processing line itself.
Perhaps for this reason only a few respondents stated that their organisations were already using the IoT in a big way. Similarly, a small number saw this changing greatly over the coming 12 months. This was against a base where over one third stated that they had little to no knowledge of the IoT, with just over a quarter stating that they had a deep knowledge of the subject (see figure 1).
One of the main conclusions we drew from our analysis of the research is that in order to bridge this gap in understanding, the industry is going to need to encourage much higher levels of collaboration.
This will require line-of-business and IT staff within companies to work closer with each other and also to cooperate with the different constituents in the food supply chain.
The industry will also need to engage with third parties that can bring domain specific expertise to the game, such as data security.
This should facilitate the sharing of data and ideas to help optimise food safety and minimise food waste across the whole chain. Indeed, the main value from automated systems will be realised by pooling all available data from all areas of the supply chain so it can be analysed in context. If this does not happen and the IoT systems are implemented as a self-contained insular environments, the results will be sub-optimal.
Another clear conclusion from our research is that to make the most of IoT and to share data in the way described above, the use of public cloud systems is going to be key.
This will benefit the data storage, management, analysis and reporting requirements. It will also ensure that data is standardised, making it far easier for analysis, documentation and reporting.
Another benefit of using a public cloud is that the provider will be duty-bound to the entire food supply chain, not just one organisation and as such be in a position to provide a full, impartial and transparent service, while maintaining the required levels of data security.
Our research also reveals that there are still barriers to overcome, however. The findings suggest the industry is still sceptical about public cloud computing platforms (see figure 2), and their biggest concern lies with data security.
Quocirca has covered the topic in depth, and it is our view that this concern is no longer really valid. Indeed, we believe that those providing public cloud based services are best placed to be at the forefront of critical issues such as security, making them core to their business.
The associated costs can be shared across their entire customer base, making suitable security in the cloud far more cost effective than the same levels of security any company can achieve with a privately owned facility.
Once it is accepted that cloud computing can be a safe platform for sharing data, organisations in the food supply chain will be better prepared to fully embrace the IoT. For example, they can consider bringing in advanced hygiene and pest control systems that use advanced analytics alongside data from general automated systems to better address the needs for compliance and overall food safety.
If this data is stored alongside other IoT data, such as that created by sensors in food storage and transport, the whole food supply chain can benefit from new insights and new learnings. Ultimately, these learnings could shape the way the industry manages compliance and improves overall food supply chain transparency in the future.
The key for those involved is to take small steps in this journey. The first step involves the identification of companies that you can benefit most from collaborating with. Â The second involves pinpointing high priority areas within your own organisation that could benefit most from IoT systems and data. By taking this route, organisations stand the best chance Â of implementing IoT systems that will provide the best return on investment.
Our range of digital pest management solutions provide food businesses with new levels of efficiency and control

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The All-New Ford Fiesta ST delivers the most versatile, fun, engaging and rewarding Fiesta ST driving experience yet – for the first time featuring Drive Modes and an all-new 200 PS, three-cylinder 1.5-litre EcoBoost engine.
Ford has revealed the new All-New Ford Fiesta – the world’s most technologically advanced small car – at a special Go Further event in Cologne, Germany. The new Fiesta is unveiled with the most sophisticated range of driver assistance technologies and connectivity features ever in a volume small car in Europe, as part of the [...]
The sophisticated new Ford Kuga SUV delivers technologies and updates to make driving simpler, safer, more enjoyable and more affordable. Ford’s new SYNC 3 communications and entertainment system features alongside innovative driver assistance technologies, an ergonomic and comfortable interior and advanced powertrains including a new 120 PS 1.5-litre TDCi diesel engine. The new Kuga offers [...]


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Souvenir Watch: The 'OBAMA-SCOPE'
The man who made and sold 3,800 periscopes for former President Bill Clinton's inauguration is back -- with the "OBAMA-SCOPE."
California lawyer and former FBI agent Richard Tosaw, 83, has created a 26-inch-long, 8-ounce periscope made of cardboard that uses mirrors to reflect viewable images. It's decorated with a portrait of Barack Obama and past presidents -- including soon-to-be past President George W. Bush.
Currently available for $20 on eBay, Tosaw has made 5,000 -- and numbered each for that "limited edition feel."
But he's also known in periscope circles for the periscope he made for Clinton's inauguration. (That one was plastic instead of cardboard.) All 3,800 of those sold out, Tosaw says, and he hopes for similar success this time.
“People come thousands of miles and spend hundreds of dollars and want to be able to see what they came for,” said Tosaw in a phone interview. “When I saw that Obama is going to be drawing crowds, I thought it would sell well, especially among young people.”
The periscope business is just a hobby for the 83-year-old -- he also works at his law office in Modesto, Calif., called the Bureau of Missing Heirs Inc. -- but it's one about which he feels passionately. (The two callings cross-pollinate: A paper company in Modesto creates and sends the cardboard cutouts to the law office, where workers assemble the devices.)
“An old man doesn’t get excited about too many things, but I’m very proud of it,” said Tosaw, who plans to fly to D.C. for the inauguration -- if he can find a hotel, which he said has been difficult.
“If I’m at the parade, I’ll have my periscope,” he said. “You better believe it.”
At a Glance:
Maker: Richard Tosaw, an 83-year-old California lawyer and former FBI agent.
Dimensions: 26 inches long; 4 inches wide at top, 1 ½ inches wide at bottom; 8 ounces.
Where to buy: Currently selling on eBay, but is expected to be available at street vendors and local gift shops during inauguration week.
Why: “It’ll be very useful to see over the crowd, but also it’s a souvenir from the event,” Tosaw said.
Inauguration Watch Verdict: It looks useful, but will it add more clutter to a viewing space that will already be jam-packed with people? Time will tell.
-- Brittany Levine, washingtonpost.com
Get This Widget >>
Posted by: rlj1 | November 24, 2008 11:16 AM | Report abuse
The comments to this entry are closed.


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Young protesters, from left, Jessie Peterson, 16, her boyfriend Matt Christunas, 17, and Daniel Johnson, 21, say they have had personal experience with the dangers of synthetic drugs. The trio joined other protesters in front of Riley’s Food Mart in Largo May 9.
LARGO – A group of concerned parents and teenagers held brightly colored signs along Seminole Boulevard in Largo May 9 to warn of the dangerous products still sold in convenience stores all over Pinellas County.
Riley’s Food Mart, where the group gathered, is just one of the places still selling synthetic drugs, said Missy Peterson, who organized the protest in front of the store with her husband, Jeff. The protesters say they have seen the sales continue despite the fact that the state of Florida has banned substances sometimes called bath salts or incense and packaged as Spice, K2 and dozens of other colorful product names designed to target teenagers and children.
“We wanted our community to know, here in Largo and in Pinellas County, that we don’t want these convenient stores to sell synthetic drugs anymore to our teenage kids,” Missy said.
The Petersons, who were interviewed by Tampa Bay Newspapers for a series about synthetic drugs last year, have struggled to deal with the effects of synthetic drugs in their family. Over the last two years, their now 16-year-old daughter, Jessie, has been in and out of four different long-term rehabilitation programs for her addiction to synthetic drugs.
But that evening, Jessie joined her parents in front of Riley’s. She’d been off the products for five days and said she’d had enough.
“It means a lot for Jessie to be here today and to show that she doesn’t want to smoke the synthetic pot anymore,” Missy said. “We’re very proud of her that she’s standing next to us.”
The Petersons said they held the protest in front of Riley’s because they know “for a fact” that their daughter and her friends have bought synthetic drugs at the convenience store.
“Basically, if you live in this area, this is where you’re going to come for it,” Jessie explained. “This is known.”
Law enforcement is doing what they can to stop the sale of illegal synthetic drugs, the Petersons said. But it was time for residents to make their voices and their presence felt directly by the businesses they hold responsible for the sales.
“All they’re doing is poisoning our kids. And they don’t seem to care and understand what it does to a family and to a community as a whole,” Missy said.
It’s not that hard to get the synthetic drugs at Riley’s, her daughter explained. You have to come at a certain time and buy the products from a specific employee who keeps the product behind the counter. He’ll charge you extra so he can pocket the profits and he’s “sketchy about cops,” Jessie said.
But he’ll sell it to anyone, she added. Her boyfriend, 17-year-old Matt Christunas, agreed. His mother, Judy Christunas, said she came to the store with her son last weekend.
“As I was shopping, he went to the counter and bought some,” she said.
“It’s as easy as that,” Matt said.
Inside the store, manager Qazi Haque said Riley’s used to sell synthetic drugs, but stopped once they were declared illegal.
“I told the owner, ‘I don’t want to get into trouble because I work here,’” Haque said. “We just work here for a little amount of money. We don’t know about the law that much.”
The laws and regulations regarding synthetic drugs got confusing, he said, but the owner didn’t open Riley’s “to sell illegal stuff.”
Synthetic drugs, often packaged with labels that state “not for human consumption,” used to be legal in Florida and everywhere else. Starting in January 2011, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi declared certain chemical compounds illegal in emergency rulings. State legislation has followed, though law enforcement has said that manufacturers continually tweak the products to keep them “legal.”
Recently, on April 15, Gov. Rick Scott signed a law that banned 27 synthetic drugs, in addition to those already outlawed.
Haque said that he didn’t think the different products should be illegal, but didn’t have any personal experience with them.
Abdul Qulam, owner of Riley’s Food Mart, said he didn’t mind the protest in front of his store. As a father himself, he understood parents’ concern for keeping children safe.
“I can say that I used to sell incense when it was named ‘incense.’ But then they started calling it ‘drugs,’” he explained. “We stopped selling that a long time ago.”
Qulam, a Largo resident who owns two other local convenience stores, said he built Riley’s Food Mart up from a vacant storefront and wanted it to be a positive part of the community. He addressed the teenagers’ accusations that a specific employee was selling them the synthetic drugs with doubt.
“My employees shouldn’t have anything like that without my consent,” he said. “I don’t think they sell anything like that.”
Jessie and Matt both said they’ve had seizures after smoking synthetic drugs. The products can make you feel weak, like it’s hard to lift your arms and legs, Jessie said.
“It all started off with the first one: Red Magic,” Jessie said. “And then it went from that on to all these different new ones.”
Seeing herself on the news, as her parent’s cried out against synthetic drugs, was Jessie’s wakeup call, she said. Withdrawal has caused her to cough up “gray stuff,” gave her “headaches like crazy” and nausea.
“I feel better every day. I crave it sometimes,” she admitted. “It’s just like a temporary happiness.”
Rehabilitation, at six-month intervals, forced her to drop out of school. Jessie is enrolled in a general education program now and said she hopes her synthetic drug days are behind her as “just a stage.”
“I’m trying to stop, get on with my life,” she said.
Daniel Johnson, 21, wore a shirt to the protest that read, “Spice is Killin my Homies!” He said he’s been against the products for years.
“I’ve seen what it’s done to so many of my friends … they don’t function the same way anymore,” he said. “It takes a toll on a person’s mentality, makes them slower, dependent on it.”
Aside from longer-term effects, Johnson said he’s seen Spice and other products have immediate and scary consequences. One girl took two hits of Spice and suddenly collapsed unconscious.
“She passed out on her own lap and they couldn’t wake her up,” he said. “You never know how much you can consume and what can happen.”


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FRIDAY, Aug. 9, 2019 (HealthDay News) — because the CBD trend sweeps the world, some users may wonder if the cannabis extract will make them fail a medication test. a initial study recommends the clear answer is „no“ — at the very least in the event that CBD is pure.
Scientists unearthed that CBD, or cannabidiol, did not respond with either of two tests that are commercially available to screen for cannabis usage. But, another cannabis compound — cannabinol (CBN) — did.
CBD and CBN are a couple of of numerous chemical substances present in cannabis flowers. They change from THC, the origin for the marijuana „high.“ CBD is present in cannabis but more loaded in hemp — cannabis plants which have little THC. CBN, meanwhile, is really A thc derivative.
If you were to think CBD items are instantly every where, you are right: there is an explosion since a year ago, when Congress lifted a ban that is decades-old growing hemp.
Licensed farmers can now grow the plant, so long as it contains significantly less than 0.3% THC. The result? CBD is arriving in sets from natural oils and creams to coffee and snacks.
CBD is promoted for reducing anxiety, sleeplessness and chronic pain, among other illnesses. The jury remains down on those uses, but there is however some technology behind the mixture. Last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (Food And Drug Administration) authorized a medication containing pure CBD — called Epidiolex — for the treatment of certain rare, serious seizures.
CBN, meanwhile, is less famous than its cousin, but it is utilized in products marketed as rest aids.
Given that context, you need to know the way the substances communicate with medication assessment tests, stated Grace Kroner, lead researcher regarding the brand new research.
She along with her peers in the University of Utah Health Sciences Center in Salt Lake City spiked three batches of urine samples with CBD, CBN as well as 2 other cannabis substances — cannabigerol and cannabichromene. Continue reading


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Harry Potter’s magic transforms Kensington
Bustling Calgary neighbourhood becomes Diagon Alley for a day to celebrate the release of ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’
It was a magical afternoon in Kensington over the long weekend, with the release of the latest installment of the Harry Potter universe, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, bringing fans of the franchise together once more for the first major reveal since the final film adaptation of the original series hit theatres in 2011.
The Cursed Child book revisits the world of the boy wizard and his friends 19 years after the final story in the original series takes place (and in real time, 19 years after the very first novel was published). The tale, which was penned by screenwriter Jack Thorne with input and final approval from J.K. Rowling, comes to readers in the form of a script, rather than a novel. But although the story departs from the previous style, timeline, and author of the original series, it is clear Potter fans strongly supported the expansion of the treasured magical world.
Even though it has been almost a decade since the seventh and final novel’s release, and five years since the films based on Rowling’s work came to an end, Potter fans continue to remain active and frequently updated by Rowling via Pottermore (the series’ website).
Although the exact turnout for the July 31 event in Kensington is not certain, estimates by event organizers, participating businesses, and local media place attendance in the mid-thousands. This resulted in sudden road closures in the area by city police to keep everyone safe.
As for the book itself, Richard Young, manager of Pages on Kensington, where Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was being released, said he’s “never had a book sell like this.”
“We knew it was going to be a big deal,” he said while folding Kensington Diagon Alley maps between the pages of each sale, his hands a blur. “But even with something like Potter — especially with Potter — you just can’t anticipate it. There’s no way to be ready for something this iconic.”
Cursed Child sold more than 2 million copies throughout North America over the first 48 hours of its release. Pages sold out of their thousands-strong stock approximately a half hour before the enchanting day came to an end at around 5 p.m.
Photos by Michaela Ritchie
Published on: August 5, 2016
Thousands of eager fans flocked to Kensington on July 31 — both Harry Potter’s and series author J.K. Rowling’s birthday — to celebrate the release of the latest installment in the Potterverse: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Despite the series’ reputation as the best selling book series in history, Ellen Parker, director of communications for the Kensington BRZ, said in an interview with Avenue magazine that event organizers “didn’t realize it would be this popular.” The hoard of fans descending on Kensington forced sudden road closures and created hour-long waiting lines to experience the magic. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child picks up the treasured tale of the boy wizard and his friends where the epilogue of the final book in the original series (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) left off. The story — not a novel, but a transcript of the rehearsal script for the West End London play of the same name — reunites fans with Harry Potter, now a middle-aged father of three and Ministry of Magic employee, and his son Albus, who is just about to start his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. To celebrate the release of the script, which coincided internationally with the opening day of the play in London, 24 shops in Kensington came together to transfigure the street into Diagon Alley, a magical market from the books, with special treats and beverages, crafts, and even a couple Quidditch matches held in Riley Park. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
There was no shortage of witches and wizards roaming the streets in Kensington on July 31. Hundreds of fans dressed in their best wizarding robes, while countless others depicted their favourite characters with more elaborate costumes. While a broad cast of characters exists in the canon for fans to pay homage to, there were more than a few bespectacled faces in the crowd, all sporting the same familiar lightning scar across their foreheads. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
Meg Sortin (left) and Michael Sornberger were on hand bright and early to help make some magic at the Plaza Theatre with a live reading of the Cursed Child script at 11 a.m. “We only got the script at eight in the morning today, when we got here, and found out who each of us would be playing, so we tried to throw characters together as fast as we could,” said Sortin, who did double duty reading as Moaning Myrtle and Harry’s mother Lily Potter. “It was a super fun experience for us as fans of the series, so we hope people really enjoyed it.” Photo by Michaela Ritchie
After enduring a two-hour line-up for Flourish and Blott’s (commonly known by muggles as Pages on Kensington), fans of the popular series were encouraged to cast their name and number into the Goblet of Fire for a chance to win a copy of the entire original series in its latest cover redesign, complete with a limited-edition novelty trunk. The books of the original series were available for individual purchase alongside the new Cursed Child script book on the day of the event. The series has, in its entirety, sold over 450 million copies to date, making it the best selling book series of all time. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
These costumes took three days each to assemble, according to their wearers, representing a crossover between the Potter franchise and the popular Star Wars series of movies. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
While many folks opted to show their Hogwarts House pride with colourful scarves, ties, and robes, and others took a more subtle approach with Potter-themed jewelry and apparel, there were a bevy of cosplayers out in full force July 31 embracing characters such as Draco Malfoy and Dolores Umbridge (left), Professor Sprout (centre), and Luna Lovegood (right). Photo by Michaela Ritchie
More than 24 vendors participated in the book release by peddling Potteresque wares of their own. Seven stores bravely attempted a unique take on “butterbeer,” a non-alcoholic beverage from the books. Higher Ground coffee house, for example, concocted a version from sweetened condensed milk and butterscotch syrups, served steamed or on ice, charging $3.85 for a medium size in each. Photo by Michaela Ritchie
It’s been 19 years since the Potter phenomena began in our world, and the same amount of time since the story came to an end in that fictional realm. The seven-book series has spawned eight films (with a ninth, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, set to be released in November), a play, fictional textbooks, a bedtime story anthology, and two script books, of which Cursed Child is only the first. Harry Potter has bewitched the hearts and imaginations fans of all ages for almost two decades now, and if Sunday’s event was any indication, he isn’t about to stop any time soon. Mischief managed! Photo by Michaela Ritchie
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child sold more than 2 million copies throughout North America over the first 48 hours of its release. Pages on Kensington sold out of their thousands-strong first stock of the script in a mere six hours. Photo by Michaela Ritchie


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Hino has added a new dealer to it network announcing the appointment of Southside Truck Centre at Lismore, in the Northern Rivers of NSW as a new sales branch after six years as a parts and service dealer.
“Following its success over the last six years as a parts and service Hino franchise, Southside Truck Centre was a logical addition to the 41 Hino sales dealerships across the country,” said Hino vice president of brand and franchise development, Bill Gillespie,.
“We are continually monitoring the Australian truck market to understand the needs of our customers.
“Southside Truck Centre has been part of the Australian trucking landscape for over 50 years, so they were the perfect choice to support and service our customers in the Northern Rivers region,” Bill Gillespie said.
Buoyed by strong and early interest in the Hino brand, dealer principal Steve Robinson said that
like many businesses, the pandemic forced them to re-evaluate the business.
“It was a logical conclusion to expand our range of products to include Hino, providing our customers with more medium and light-duty options, and a complete range of trucks for all applications.
“With the launch last year of the new 300 Series including an expansion of the Built to Go products, it is a particularly exciting time to be involved with Hino Australia,” Steve Robinson said.
Steve credits the family-owned and operated company’s longevity to its ‘customer first’’ ethos.
Hino Australia has over 65 dealerships and services centres throughout the country, and more information can be found at www.hino.com.au


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Unlock your Windows 10 PC from your Windows 10 Mobile Device using Phone Sign-In
A new app that allows you to unlock your Windows 10 PC with a Windows 10 Mobile device just appeared in the Store. The app is called Phone Sign-in and it’s already available in beta.
Phone Sign-In works over Bluetooth to connect your phone to your PC so you can easily unlock it simply by pressing one button on your Windows 10 Mobile device — without the need of entering a password. So, users who don’t have fingerprint sensors or a Windows Hello-compatible camera finally have an alternative way to sign in.
app: Phone Sign-in Beta https://t.co/4HtNplVQUC says it can unlock Windows 10 PC by tapping on it pic.twitter.com/reJ5ckiOtR
— WalkingCat (@h0x0d) March 9, 2016
As stated on Phone Sign-In’s official Windows Store page, the app is still in beta and we expect more options for it in the future. Some of the features that will eventually be added eventually are: support for Microsoft account, a sign-in solution for browsers and VPN, one-time passcode generation, and MFA approval through notifications.
Same app as Microsoft Authenticator?
We’re definitely glad that Microsoft is working on improving Windows 10’s security by delivering new security options. But when Walking Cat told his followers on Twitter about Phone Sign-In, one glaring detail stood out.
Phone Sign-In is basically the same app as Microsoft Authenticator, the app we covered in January. Microsoft Authenticator offers the same sync option over Bluetooth as Phone Sign-in, with Microsoft also promising similar features for Authenticator once the app leaves the beta.
So, we’re wondering: what will Microsoft plan to do with two identical apps in the Store? Perhaps Microsoft decided to change the name of the app. With both apps currently being tested internally, there could ultimately be only one, final version in the Store. We’ll see.
Until then, download and try the Phone Sign-In app on your Windows 10 Mobile device as it is already available in the Store.
If you notice any differences between Microsoft Authenticator and Phone Sign-In, please let us know in the comments below!


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Gears of War: Ultimate Edition received a big update today on PC. Now that Windows 10 is no longer locking the frame rate and frame syncing of Windows Store games at the system level, Gears’ new patch will allow the game to take advantage of these features.
Once the game is patched, you’ll be able to turn off V-sync and decide whether or not to limit the frame rate, something that previously was not possible thanks to limitations of the Universal Windows Platform. The update also adds more filtering settings and an FPS counter.
The beta for Forza Motorsport 6: Apex is said to be getting this feature soon as well, and Quantum Break should already sport it following last week’s 27 gigabyte patch. No word yet on Rise of the Tomb Raider.


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CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Dave & Buster's will permanently lay off 85 workers in December at its Walden Galleria location, according to a filing with the New York State Department of Labor.
The entertainment center chain blames the cuts on "unforeseeable business circumstances prompted by COVID-19." The Cheektowaga location has been closed since mid-March. It's unclear if the layoff filing means the Galleria store will not reopen.
The layoffs come as Dave & Buster's eyes bankruptcy unless it can strike a deal with a lender, according to The Wall Street Journal. The chain, which provides food, drinks and arcade games under one roof, saw its second-quarter year-to-year revenue plummet 85 percent, dropping from 344.6 million in 2019 to $50.8 this year.
Most Dave & Buster's locations nationwide were forced to shut down for months because of the pandemic. As of September 9, the company had reopened 89 of its 137 locations, according to the WSJ.
The Walden Galleria store, which opened in the fall of 2015 following a move from the Eastern Hills Mall, remains closed due to restrictions put in place by the state of New York.
All amusement parks and movie theatres also remain closed indefinitely.


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Microsoft plans to launch the Nokia Lumia 800 smartphone on Valentines Day in a special bundle costing $899, according to reports.
The Verge reckons the pack will include the unlocked Windows Phone-running smartphone, a Nokia Play 360 wireless speaker, an in-ear Bluetooth headset and a Purity HD Stereo headset.
Microsoft first announced that the Lumia 800 would be heading to the United States as an unlocked device at CES 2012, although there are no present plans to release it outside of the bundle.
The bundle, albeit extremely pricey, seems to present an opportunity for Valentine's Day shoppers to get a super-exclusive handset through Microsoft's retail stores.
Instead of launching the Lumia 800 in the US, Nokia focused on announcing the larger 4.3-inch, 4G-enabled Lumia 900 device at CES 2012.
That device is scheduled to launch exclusively on the AT&T network on March 18th, while a white version of the Nokia Lumia 800 has also been confirmed
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Opening of a new railway crossing Altynkol – Khorgos on the Kazakhstan-Chinese border made positive impact on Kazakhstan’s position in the ranking of the World Bank ”Doing Business” (”Ease of Doing Business”) in 2015. This was said on the Eurasian Business Forum held in Almaty, by co-author of the report group WB «Doing Business 2015″ (“Doing Business 2015”) Irina Belotserkovskaya.
”At the report <Doing Business 2015> for the period of June 2013 to June 2014, we noted the reform in the indicator <international trade>, which helped to improve the transit time of 20-foot containers on the segment of China – Almaty road, thanks to the opening of a new crossing point at Khorgos. Rating Kazakhstan rose up one place from 186th to the 185th at the indicator “international trade,” Irina Belotserkovskaya co-author of the report group WB “Doing Business 2015” said.
WB representative explained that the determination of the indicator “international trade”, the bank’s experts look at the various components that affect the process of export and import, including document preparation, customs clearance, transportation and port operations (research presume that the goods are carried by sea).


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The Remtec team is pleased to announce that we will be attending the International Woodworking Fair®, North America’s largest woodworking technology and design trade show and conference. This year’s event is taking place in Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center, August 23 – 26, 2022.
A wide range of individuals and businesses involved in the global woodworking sector attend the International Woodworking Fair (IWF) to see the latest solutions in architectural woodwork, cabinetry, flooring, furniture manufacturing, engineered products, doors, windows, machinery, tools, metals, plastics and more.
Wood Furniture Sanding System Highlighted
In conjunction with IWF, Remtec is highlighting the automated robotic sanding system for wood chairs, which was developed by our team. FANUC recently released a new video featuring this automated system, which utilizes two FANUC M-10iA/10M robots equipped with FANUC FS-15iA Force Sensors to effectively and efficiently sand wooden chairs of varying profiles and styles for consistent throughput and improved finish quality.
If you plan to attend IWF, look for our team – you’ll see us there wearing Remtec shirts.


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Photo via DELERI
In a move that could ban the sale products that aren't energy efficient, the EU has agreed to set environmental standards on "energy-related" household goods. Stuff like showerheads and windows will now need to meet an energy efficiency standard in order to be sold or imported to Europe, according to Bloomberg. In other words, soon citizens will have no choice but to buy certain energy efficient products. The initiative is a bid to reduce energy consumption across European countries—and it could help improve energy efficiency 20% by 2020. An environmental standard was already set by the EU back in 2005, but it only covered the direct effects of power consumption items had: (from Bloomberg)
The European Parliament approved a draft law expanding 2005 legislation on the ecological design of energy-using products to cover goods that have an indirect effect on power consumption. Water-using items such as taps are covered because hot water requires energy.
The original legislation included electronic devices and heating and electrical equipment—the definition has now been expanded to cover all "energy-related" goods. Hence the windows and showerheads: it's quite an expansion. And products that don't make the cut? They're banned from sale in any EU country.
And what would surely rouse cries of "socialism" in the US is being embraced in the EU:
This will "provide consumers with more efficient, more reliable and longer-lasting products," said Magor Imre Csibi, a Romanian member who steered the measure through the 27-nation EU assembly today in Strasbourg, France. Governments have already signaled their support under a fast-track accord with the Parliament, making their final approval a formality in the coming weeks.
So what do you think: A bold move to reduce energy consumption on a large scale? A win-win situation to provide European consumers with energy efficient goods while saving power? Or an infringement on buyer's rights?
More on EU Energy Efficiency
Renewable Energy Directive Proposed for EU
EU Mayors Sign Covenant of Mayors Climate Initiative


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Capital Product Partners (CPLP), a Marshall Islands master limited partnership, has agreed to merge its crude and product tanker business with US-based tanker company DSS in an all-stock deal worth $1.65bn.
As part of the agreement, CPLP will first spin off its crude and product tanker business into a new company, which will eventually merge with DSS. Based in the US, DSS owns and operates medium-range product and Suezmax crude tankers.
CPLP’s general partner Capital GP director and CEO Gerasimos Kalogiratos said: “This transaction also enables CPLP to combine its tanker assets with DSS, a market leader that will be led by an accomplished management team with an excellent industry track record.”
“Finally, this transaction allows CPLP to reshape its business with a modern fleet that has a remaining average charter duration of 5.3 years, providing CPLP unitholders with more stability and cash flow visibility.”
Post the merger, the new company to be called Diamond S Shipping is expected to become a major player in the crude and product tanker markets.
To be headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, Diamond S Shipping is expected to benefit from a balanced and large-scale portfolio of vessels to go along with a cost-efficient commercial platform.
The company’s asset portfolio will feature product and crude tankers of CPLP and DSS. Overall, Diamond S Shipping will have 68 tankers, with an average age of 7.8 years, out of which 52 are product tankers while 16 are crude tankers.
The new company is anticipated to be the third largest publicly traded product tanker operator and the fifth largest public tanker company in the world.
Post the merger, CPLP shareholders will own a stake of around 33% in Diamond S Shipping while the remaining stake will be owned by DSS equity owners.
DSS CEO Craig Stevenson, Jr. who will be the CEO of Diamond S Shipping, said: “This transaction will occur at an opportunistic time in the cycle and creates one of the largest, highest quality fleets and best capitalized public shipping companies in the market.
“We are confident that this unique combination will create significant shareholder value through the cycle by using our cash flow to invest in the business via acquisitions and returning capital back to our shareholders. We look forward to leveraging CPLP’s outstanding expertise and industry reputation as we work to grow the business together.”
The transaction will be subject to certain conditions with one of them being the US Securities and Exchange Commission declaring effective the registration statement of Diamond S Shipping.


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SiGMA’s Lorraine Sammut took to social media to bid the company farewell after just over a year working in business development.
“Today is my last day at SiGMA – World’s Gaming Festival. To say it’s been eventful is an understatement. Thank you [Founder] Eman Pulis for taking me under your radar during the toughest years for events and for believing in me,” Ms Sammut wrote.
She went on to thank “the rest of the squad” who are “undoubtedly some of the fiercest and most hardworking individuals [she’s] worked with”.
Ms Sammut has now joined London-based fintech company Citizen as Head of iGaming Partnerships.
“Thank you to every one of you who took cold calls and entrusted me with your goals, and to my regular clients who have become friends. The good news is that I’ll still be an Ambassador,” she wrote.
“They say ‘pick a job you like and you won’t have to work a day in your life.’ In my case, I picked an industry that I love,” Ms Sammut concluded.
Before joining SiGMA in November 2020, Ms Sammut held a series of events and iGaming-related roles. These include: Head of Events at SBC, Communications Manager and Employer Brand Manager at Videoslots, Festivals and Events Management at 356 Group, and VIP Sales Manager at Grupo Mambo.
Lorraine Sammut / LinkedIn
She sheds light on the nuances surrounding the maritime industry in Malta as part of the latest edition of Malta ...
He was speaking as the retail chain marks 15 years since it opened its first outlet in Żebbug, back in ...
An actively managed strategy will focus attention on market behavior for a high yielding investment product.


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The last missing piece of the OPPO R17 puzzle got solved today as the company declared a price tag of RMB 3,499 (Rs 35,000) on the upcoming upper mid-range phone. OPPO has skipped the R15s for some reason this year, instead opting for a big leap in design and features with the R17. The handset is listed on a number of Chinese e-commerce portals like JD.com, Tmall, and Suning as well as OPPO’s own Chinese portal for pre-order. Sadly, the more interesting R17 Pro price still remains elusive, but we guess OPPO’s saving that for the launch event which is three days from now on August 23rd.
OPPO R17 Specs
For 500 Yuan more than the R15, you get a solid upgrade under the chassis as well as over it. The new Snapdragon 670 chip sits at the centre of the core pulling the strings of a 6.4-inch AMOLED display which has a mini V-shaped new cutout. That’s not all, the latest R series handset is also coming with a shy fingerprint reader that hides beneath the display.
The poster that the company published today also mentions an 8GB +128GB variant which we presume is the base model. It has a 25MP selfie camera and battery capacity should be 3,500mAh with VOOC Charge being the icing on the cake.
There are two colours – Stream Blue and Neon Purple. The R17 costs 500 Yuan more than its predecessor which is justifiable considering what all it packs in that sleek package. The handset is equivalent to the OPPO F9 that comes with the MediaTek Helio P60 processor in India.


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Private equity firms are increasing their exposure to agriculture and food and were more present in packaged food, meats and agricultural products deals than corporates over the past three years, according to a recent report published by Grant Thornton Australia.
Private equity firms invested in just 14 percent of food and beverage deals overall but had a significant presence in packaged food, meats and agricultural product investments that accounted for 87 percent of their deal flow, according to the data.
The increase comes amid increasing realisation that the private equity sector has largely ignored the agribusiness sector; TIAA-CREF’s John Goodreds, senior director of Natural Resources, recently said that the large institutional investor had just 10 -15 agribusinesses in its entire private equity portfolio in 2010, something he was brought on to change.
Half of these deals took place in Europe but emerging economies were a notable piece of the pie; Russian businesses accounted for 178 deals over the three-year period and Chinese businesses represented 90 deals. Some 2,426 deals were recorded globally during the period.


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In a context of rising prices for foie gras as the end of year festivities approach, vegan alternatives to the famous French gourmet dish are multiplying. Brands play the most advantageous price card to seduce without just looking for animal welfare.
“Hyper realistic” alternatives to foie gras
In Spain, the Hello Plant Foods brand is proud of its latest novelty. This specialist in plant-based meat alternatives, best known for his hamburger steak made with just ten ingredients, is proud to have developed the first vegan foie gras available from caterers. Based on cashew nuts, coconut oil, lentil flour, Armagnac and beetroot extract, this foie gras took a year of development at the Spanish brand to perfect its recipe called Hello Fuah!, which she praises as “hyper realistic” . Consumers will be able to form their opinion since the store launch took place in early December, following the announcement made by the brand through its Instagram account.
Neslé is also entering this market
The novelty arrives a few days after the arrival in force of the revenue of a giant in the food industry, Nestlé. Through its Garden Gourmet brand, the multinational is snapping up the vegan foie gras market with a product already available in Spain and Switzerland, sold for CHF 7.95 per 180g, or around 8 euros. While the production of the famous refined dish is banned in several countries such as Denmark, the United Kingdom or Australia, food brands are multiplying new products in an attempt to seduce consumers with their imitation of foie gras. As King Charles III banned the famous French dish from British royal tables, research is ongoing to provide better vegan recipes that can truly replace foie gras without creating frustration. For Garden Gourmet’s “fat route”, it was a German laboratory that found the composition, based on miso, yeast, grilled sesame and truffle.
Gaia’s fake fat is 10 years old
At the last International Innovation Fair, which brought together 265,000 agri-food professionals from around the world in Paris Nord-Villepinte, the vegetable offer, which covered a quarter of food innovations, presented vegan recipes for tuna and chicken foie gras without animal protein. In the start-up corner, the French company Aberyne was salivating over its vegetable composition by presenting it as the “first high-quality plant-based foie gras”, to be consumed cold or hot in a frying pan. And for these end-of-year celebrations, even Picard got in on the act! The chain of frozen food stores offers a “delight of cashew nuts, mushrooms”, at 5.99 euros for a 220g box, as part of a complete vegetable-only menu.
The distributor did not call her recipe “fake fat”. That’s the name used by one of the department’s precursor brands, based on water, coconut oil, potato starch, sunflower protein, tomato pulp and champagne according to the labeling listed by the Open Food Facts database: the Brussels company Gaia launched its “fake fat” ten years ago.
After the taste and animal welfare argument, the price
The story of vegan foie gras is not new. But, in a context of changing eating habits, with a quarter of French people limiting meat consumption (FranceAgriMer), the proliferation of “false foie gras” comes at a time when the price of the original product is twice as expensive, end of year celebrations are approaching. The interprofession of web palms with foie gras (Cifog) had warned last March that prices were going to rise: food to feed ducks and geese is more expensive (+22% in one year, at the end of March 2022) while producers also had to invest in adapting their buildings and equipment to contain the avian flu epidemic. This historic health crisis led to the disappearance of 17.3 million birds in France alone, including 3.8 million ducks for the foie gras industry. In Spain, the Hello Plant Foods brand does not hesitate to attract new consumers with a price argument. She indicates that her Hello Fuah! it’s 50% cheaper than regular foie gras.
And the success of vegan foie gras this weekend? In a year, it’s another type of fake foie gras that can be tested on the New Year’s table: a synthetic foie gras, developed under a microscope by the French startup Gourmey, which plans to set up a 4,300 m3 workshop in the Paris region by 2024. It remains to be seen at what price will this product be sold…
Find all news on Metrotime.be


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Cote d'Ivoire Economic Outlook
September 18, 2018Cote d’Ivoire’s momentum looks to have endured into the second half of the year despite the volatility in cocoa prices, which erased their early-year recovery in recent months. As the world’s leading cocoa producer, export volumes underpin consumer spending and, as such, the government has made a number of attempts to boost prices. The latest proposal came in early September when it agreed to set a floor price with neighboring Ghana, highlighting strong cooperation in an ever-closer relationship. Meanwhile, glowing reviews by the IMF this year have helped rekindle investor confidence following last year’s political turmoil and hint at a recent bump in capital spending.
Cote d'Ivoire Economic GrowthFocusEconomics analysts expect resilient growth next year as higher prices for several key export commodities support household spending and backstop the external sector. Over the coming years, improving fiscal metrics and rapid infrastructure development should encourage stronger FDI inflows. However, although analysts see growth firm at 7.4% in 2018 and 7.1% in 2019, political stability appears increasingly fragile in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.
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Johnson & Johnson announced that the company will stop selling the Sedasys System due to unexpectedly slow sales and company-wide cost-cutting.
The Sedasys System, a computer-assisted personalized sedation device that allows non-anesthesia professionals to administer propofol, was touted by some as a potential replacement for anesthesiologists.
The device delivers a measured dose of propofol into the patient’s bloodstream via IV infusion for minimal to moderate sedation. The device is programmed to detect signs associated with oversedation, and will slow or stop the infusion if symptoms are detected. The system also offered major cost savings to patients: Sedation for colonoscopy would cost $150 to $200 using Sedasys compared with $2,000 for an anesthesiologist, the Washington Post reported.
The Sedasys System was initially rejected for approval by the FDA in 2010. But the agency cleared the device in 2013, when Johnson & Johnson agreed that it would only be used for healthy patients aged 18 years or older, undergoing sedation during routine colonoscopy and esophagogastroduodenoscopy procedures.


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Cocoa is the plant from which chocolate is made. Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana together account for 65% of global cocoa production, but farmers in these two countries earn less than 6% of the chocolate industry’s total revenue.
The cocoa bean value chain has five major segments. The first is cocoa bean production, which involves local farmers. The second is sourcing and marketing, which involves local and international traders and exporters of cocoa beans and semi-processed products. The third is processing, which involves grinders and chocolate manufacturers. The fourth is distribution, which involves retailers. And finally, there are the consumers.
Cocoa growers’ share of the final product has reduced over the years as traders, brands and retailers have taken a bigger cut. For example, according to Fairtrade, when cocoa prices were high in the 1970s, cocoa accounted for up to 50% of the value of a chocolate bar. This fell to 16% in the 1980s and today farmers receive around 6% of the value. Cocoa farmers in Ghana now make roughly $1 a day (this often includes being subsidised by the Ghanaian government). Those in Côte d’Ivoire make around $0.78 a day.
The living-income differential programme, launched last year, was designed by both countries to help cocoa farmers escape poverty by adding a premium to the prevailing market price. But only a month after the launch of the programme, authorities in the two countries disclosed that confectionery multinationals were refusing to pay farmers the agreed living wage.
The US multinational Mondelz, for instance, was recently accused of paying a negative country differential. Last year another US firm, Hershey, bought from futures exchanges to avoid paying the differential and other companies are changing their buying patterns as well.
I have studied the relationship between growers in the two countries and global buyers in previous articles. As it is currently structured, the living-income differential programme is sending the wrong signal to cocoa farmers. And multinational buyers will benefit from it at the expense of farmers.
The main problem
Just before the October 2020 cocoa growing season, Ghana announced that the guaranteed sum paid to cocoa farmers would increase by 28% per tonne for the new growing season. Côte d’Ivoire implemented a 21% increase in the price of the main crop of the 2020/2021 season.
These announcements were part of the living-income differential programme, which made headlines in 2019 when the two countries came together to form an agreement to provide a living wage to more than a million small scale cocoa farmers.
On the surface, the agreement looked like a cartel; it was even dubbed “COPEC”, a snide reference to the oil exporting cartel OPEC. But there are many problems with this arrangement. Both Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire were betting on the willingness of multinational companies to exhibit compassion by declaring their support. Instead of restricting supply to increase prices, the mechanism simply adds a premium of $400 per tonne to prevailing world market prices (which are mainly affected by the amount of cocoa in the market), without addressing market leakages and the effect of the premium on both world market prices and future supplies.
Unsurprisingly, there has been a general decrease in demand since the programme was launched, along with reports of confectionery multinationals’ buying indirectly to avoid the premium. Hershey openly diversified its cocoa sources the moment the living income differential came online. Other confectionery multinationals are doing the same indirectly, because the official demand is now significantly lower than in previous years. Multinationals are blaming this on the effect of COVID-19 on cocoa demand.
However, this explanation could be an excuse, because there is some evidence that confectionery sales have actually increased during the lockdown. Both Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire are likely to have a great deal of unsold cocoa at the end of the season, which will further reduce the market price.
Indeed, the Ivorian government has already announced a reduction of producer prices by 9% by April 2021; Ghana may not follow suit but the debt incurred by the Cocoa Board could well increase. Both countries have promised to name and shame companies that are not complying with the payments.
The obvious problem with the differential is that it is bound to increase cocoa supply (because more farmers will move into cocoa production) and reduce demand through official channels. Both outcomes will further increase the supply of cocoa and drive prices downward. The $400 premium or more could be wiped out of cocoa prices as a result of the extra supply that the programme creates.
One bargaining position available to African countries is to exclude from sustainability programmes any firms that fail to comply with the programme. Multinationals claim that sustainability programmes are for the good of farmers, but they actually perform practical commercial functions such as guaranteeing supply and giving certain firms the stamp of ethical sourcing needed to placate environmental and humanitarian groups and possibly avoid lawsuits.
Solving the problem
One solution to the above problem, which both Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire are trying to solve, is to control and restrict supply instead of simply adding a price premium.
In 1987, when cocoa prices collapsed, the then president of Côte d’Ivoire, Félix Houphouët-Boigny, responded by implementing a withholding scheme. The country then controlled roughly 40% of the market. However, this was not enough to control cocoa prices. Scholars have often suggested that Houphouët-Boigny failed to control cocoa prices in the 1980s because new supplying countries (such as Malaysia) made up for the shortfall.
Restricting supply is the one sure way to influence price. However, this measure must be implemented differently from Houphouët-Boigny’s rash decision in 1987. Together, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire control 65% of the world cocoa market; they would only need to team up with three other countries (Indonesia, Nigeria and Cameroon) to gain a share large enough to fully control cocoa prices.
However, given the current structure of the sector in both countries, this would be difficult to achieve for two reasons. First, the IMF has already liberalised the marketing system in both countries, so what Houphouët-Boigny did in 1987 would now be almost impossible. The second, and perhaps most important, reason is that the so-called sustainability programmes organised by multinationals in both countries are in effect productivity programmes, in that they are structured to increase production and supply. Hence, they are inimical to any attempt to control supply.


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Volunteers of the state's poverty eradication mission "Kudumbasree" will be roped in for cooking and serving food at the hotel.
Tea Trails also offers breakfast, lunch and all day options. And many of the dishes are infused with tea.
With estimated annual sales of more than Rs 1,100 crore, the brand’s size is almost double that of the overall breakfast cereal market.
Maggi is looking to position the new variant as a morning option, a category dominated by oats, cornflakes and muesli on the western-breakfast menu.
Headquarters of new company will be in Canada, which may also help Burger King lower its taxes. Tax inversions have been criticized by Obama .
From September 12-24, London will soon have a pop-up restaurant that’s 100 feet above in the air
Dualit has finally found a solution with a new toaster that measures the room conditions to help ensure perfect browning.
The offers across hotels start at Rs2,499 per night and a 15% discount on food and beverages in properties across in India.


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Tuesday, December 19, 2006
100,000 Bebo Widgets produced in 12 hours after its launch? David Beisel over at Genuine VC thinks that the secret story of 2006, has been "rise of the widgets". With Yahoo launching its new Widget, and Google going "all widget", the internet, and services, are going to have to become customer configurable. We are going to see more of this in the new year, particularly in the Teen space. It will also be interesting to see if Bebo, MySpace, Linked-In, etc. begin to see themselves as Innovation Ecosystems for customer contact solutions.


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Florida consumer confidence sinks in July
Consumer confidence among Floridians dropped for the first time after four consecutive months of gains, according to a University of Florida survey.
Consumer confidence in Florida sank three points in July to 79 from a revised reading of 81, according to UF's Survey Research center in the Bureau of Economic and Business Research.
“We were surprised by this sudden decline,” said Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center. “Consumer confidence at the national level as measured by the University of Michigan actually rose slightly in July to 85.1. This raises questions as to what is happening that led to Florida’s decline.”
Four of the five components measured in the index decreased. Overall perceptions among respondents that they now are better off financially than they were a year ago fell three points to 66. Meanwhile, their expectations of better personal finances a year from now dropped six points to 76.
Among the other indexes, confidence in the nation's economy over the coming year fell three points to 79, and consumer's faith in the country's economic health over the next five years fell seven points to 75, according to the survey.
Only one component in the index saw an increase. Floridians feel that now is a good time to buy big-ticket items, such as new cars, which rose four points to 96.
“The drop in confidence seems to be driven by pessimism among younger respondents with lower incomes,“ McCarty said. “This age group reports not only lower current personal finances now compared to a year ago, but their expectations of lower personal finances a year from now fell too, dramatically dropping from 101 to 87 for those under 60 and from 82 to 68 for those with incomes under $30,000.”
Shaun Bevan is the digital producer for the South Florida Business Journal. Stay on top of the latest business news with our free daily newsletter. Click here to subscribe.
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Predicting trends is a notoriously tricky business. People are inherently unpredictable, and oftentimes what appears to be a sure thing turns out to be nothing but a red herring. There is obviously huge power in knowing what is coming and in being able to stay one step ahead of the game. The technology sector is cut-throat and fast moving. It is an industry that rewards those who can predict its future, while it mercilessly punishes those who can’t keep up.
Last month saw the 2018 addition of the annual CES trade show. It is at CES that consumers and industry observers get their first glimpses of the prototypes and innovations which will shape the industry into the coming year, and far beyond! This year’s CES show was no exception. Numerous big names from the world of tech demoed their latest innovations, and in doing so have given us our first glimpse of the near future of technological innovation.
Voice assistants are becoming an increasingly common sight in homes across America. They are a perfect illustration of how advanced our efforts at artificial intelligence are becoming. Combining this technology with the advances that companies like Somnox are making in the area of robotics is leading us towards human-like robots, which can interact with us in more realistic ways.
The world is still getting to grips with virtual reality, a technology which has numerous uses as both an entertainment and an educational tool. However, it is in augmented reality that the most exciting possibilities lie. Augmented reality adds a digital overlay to the real world and in doing so allows developers to create software that is immersive in a way that even virtual reality cannot match. An example of the potential mass appeal of AR technology can be seen in the smash hit game Pokémon Go, which adds Pokémon to the real world using the player’s smartphone.
With both virtual reality and augmented reality becoming increasingly popular, it is unsurprising that so many tech startups are exploring the opportunities that these technologies offer. If you are an aspiring technology entrepreneur, then check out this online MBA course from Northeastern University. Attending Northeastern University Online will earn students a degree that carries the same weight as those obtained by attending the university campus.
Laptop – Tablet Hybrids
The laptop as we know it is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. As touchscreens become more common, it was inevitable that the two technologies would be married together. We are fast approaching the point where a standard laptop features a detachable touchscreen, which behaves as a tablet when it isn’t docked. This trend has been building for the last few years but may well reach its climax this year.
It isn’t hard to see the appeal of these machines, as tablets have been trying to muscle in on laptop territory for a while now – and have been reasonably successful in doing so for many people. By combining both options into a single machine, manufacturers have been able to offer customers unparalleled functionality.
The technology industry is one of the hardest to predict the future of, often the trends that come to dominate are the ones quietly bubbling away in the background. The three trends above are just a very small selection of the many potential directions that technology might take in 2018.


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McDonald's Menu Prices Are Rising for This Reason
If you feel like prices have been creeping up at your local McDonald's in the past few years, you're right. They have.
According to Restaurant Business Online, franchisees across the nation have been increasing prices on many popular premium items such as the classic Big Mac. But why are stores raising prices on many items? Simply put, because they have realized they can for two reasons: customer reliability and the demise of the value menu… or, in McDonald's case, the Dollar Menu.
According to Today, the Dollar Menu was first introduced in 2002 and was essentially done away with in 2017, when the chain switched to the $1 $2 $3 Dollar Menu. While intended to function much as rock bottom "door buster" sales do on the shopping bonanza known as Black Friday, the Dollar Menu was intended to get customers into the store and, ideally, likely to end up making larger purchases. In practice, it had the effect of forcing franchisees to keep prices on non-dollar menu items lower than they wanted.
"We were tied to the Dollar Menu for so long, it tied our hands to raise the rest of the menu," former McDonald's franchise owner Jim Lewis told Restaurant Business Online. If prices on regular menu items grew too high for customer preference, the customer would simply shift to Dollar Menu items.
With the Dollar Menu effectively gone, franchisees can now raise prices on other beloved menu items without customers having much recourse (other than leaving without making a purchase). And based on reported 3.6% year-over-year increases in same-store sales in the three years since the Dollar Menu was slashed, the new approach is working, at least from a business viewpoint.
For more McDonald's news, check out the 5 new McDonald's menu items that will be released in 2021.


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These days, tech leaks and rumours and “secret mysterious videos” of unreleased apple products are dime a dozen.
However, there are a few that stand above the he-said-she-said fluff; like German tech magician, Simon Pierro.
Simon has already gained widespread notoriety for integrating his passion for technology with his talent for magic.
So, in the height of today’s iPad media clamour, Cellular Firm breaks down the one and only Simon Pierro and his mystical iPad review.
Here we go…
“Surprisingly, it’s a bit thicker and slightly heavier.”
Indeed, Apple has confirmed that the iPad 3 will be a little bit heavier than the iPad 2.
It’s interesting to note how Simon’s iPad 3 is missing the home button.
Only recently Apple officially announced that the iPad 3 will be controlled entirely through touchscreen.
‘oooltra-high resolution retina display’
English isn’t Simon’s first language; but hey, he gives credence to an early iPad 3 rumour leaked earlier on this year: Gorilla Glass.
He goes on to say that the new iPad 3 uses Corning Gorilla Glass; giving the tablet extra durability while also displaying visuals at 2048×1536 pixels.
“You can even share your photos with your parents…”
This is interesting, because we really haven’t heard this feature in the rumour mill.
However, this new mysterious file sharing software Simon speaks of is akin to the latest TAT software BlackBerry PlayBook released at MWC 2012.
If Simon is right, iPad users will now have the ability to drag files onto other wireless devices; making file sharing that much more “advanced.”
But is this all part of Simon’s trickery?
Or the real deal…We’ll have to wait to confirm this one.
“Let’s have a closer look at Siri.”
Aside from its physical weight, Siri separates the iPad 3 from the iPad 2.
If you don’t believe us, hit play and let us know what you think on our Facebook fan page.


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The number of homeless people in Japan is increasing year on year. Moreover, support is always hard to come by as homelessness is seen as a personal failure, the fate that one brings upon oneself.
To raise awareness and donations to this ongoing crisis, Ogilvy & Mather Tokyo created for Megamax, Japan’s leading bed and furniture mega store, and Moyai, the Japanese Association for the Homeless, the Homeless Beds Collection.
Built by the finest Japanese artisans; using elements that mimic the streets of Tokyo like rough asphalt mud, dirty cement and stinky sewer lids with rats, the beds replicate in detail the horrible conditions where thousands sleep in every night.
The beds were supported by an integrated campaign and displayed at Megamax’s flagship store to great impact. For an unexpected finale, its message will now reach the most powerful politicians on earth, as the collection was selected to be displayed at the G7 Summit taking place at the end of May in Japan.


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Natalie Jacewicz, a science writer based in New York City has this illuminating story on packaging:
Scoot over, cans; cartons are moving in on your shelf space. Specifically, the soft, light rectangular containers commonly associated with juice boxes — “aseptic cartons” to the carton literati.
“They’re growing in popularity,” says Jason Pelz, vice president of recycling projects for the Carton Council, an industry group. “Broth is predominantly in aseptic packaging now, and you see a lot of coconut water in it.”
Aseptic cartons pack several environmental upsides, with one big catch: Traditionally, these containers have been quite difficult to recycle. To take stock of the promises and challenges of this supermarket sensation, I talked to experts on all things carton.
Like any enigmatic celebrity, the aseptic carton has layers. Though lightweight, the exterior is composed of multiple coats of paperboard, plastic and aluminum. This type of carton has been around since the 1950s, according to Pelz, but for a long time was limited primarily to milk cartons in countries without refrigerated shipping.
The aseptic carton “has lots of environmental advantages,” says Darby Hoover, a senior resource specialist with the Natural Resources Defense Council. “It’s lightweight, and it typically doesn’t need to be refrigerated [until opened].”
Lightweight packaging requires less energy to ship than heavier material. The packaging versus product ratio — seemingly the packaging industry’s analog of dress measurements — is a dainty 7 percent packaging to 93 percent product by weight. By comparison, a steel can’s ratio is 13 percent packaging to 87 percent product.
The carton’s rectangular shape allows for close packing in transport, according to Pelz, which makes shipping more efficient. The shelf-stable cartons can also prevent food spoilage.
Alas, the aseptic carton has a tragic flaw. “There’s a real challenge in trying to recycle it, because you have all these materials that are essentially glued together,” explains Hoover.
Aseptic cartons aren’t the only type to face such challenges. The “gable-top” milk carton — a paper-based container plenteous in elementary school cafeterias — also has paper and plastic layers that are difficult for many recycling plants to separate.
In recognition of these difficulties, the Carton Council formed in 2009 to increase recycling capabilities for both aseptic and gable-top cartons in the United States…
Read the whole article here.


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Average earnings for IT workers at companies with more than 5,000 employees: $88,075.
For two rows in a year now, the IT industry has experienced nearly flat salaries, according to the 2010 Annual Salary Survey data from technology employment firm Dice. The survey found that salaries only increased by 0.7 percent last year, up to $79,384. However, job titles, company size and regional markets had a big affect on pay performance. Here's a look at the best performers.
This article was originally published on 2011-02-09
Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which QuinStreet receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. QuinStreet does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.


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A four-bedroom show home has launched at Sandbrook Meadows in Seaburn, a brand new development of 64 four and five-bedroom homes right by the coast.
The Stevenson show home is now open for viewings by appointment, giving people a glimpse into the life and the properties at the Miller Homes development.
Located off South Bents Avenue, Sandbrook Meadows is just 400 yards from the Blue Flag award-winning Seaburn Beach and around a five-minute walk to the sea front’s cafes and restaurants, as well as the new Stack complex.
The seaside location inspired elements of the show home’s interior design, especially two of the bedrooms created with children in mind.
One follows a funfair theme and another is a nod to the annual Sunderland International Airshow which draws crowds to the seafront.
A warm colour palette with wooden accessories and gold accents flows throughout the rest of the home, which was designed by local interior designer Q Interiors.
To allow for safe social distancing show home viewings can be booked via appointment on the Miller Homes website or by calling the development.
Appointments also include the opportunity to meet with the development sales manager to find out more about the range of homes available.
Appointments will be fully socially distanced and for everyone’s safety, Miller Homes has put new measures in place for visiting its developments.
These include people being required to wear a mask during their appointment, using hand sanitiser on arrival and departure, and maintaining social distancing.
An enhanced cleaning programme is also in operation.
Debbie Whittingham, area sales director at Miller Homes Teesside, said: “Choosing desirable locations for our developments has always been important to us, but the past five months have placed even more emphasis on the importance of community and what’s on your doorstep.
"Sandbrook Meadows is perfectly placed to take advantage of the beach and parks within walking distance as well as an ever-growing café and restaurant scene.
“Across all of our developments including Sandbrook Meadows, which is our first in Seaburn, we have implemented a range of measures so we can safely welcome house hunters in the market for a new home.
"This latest show home is stunning and featuring a nod to many of the aspects Seaburn is best known for, the interior design is unique to the area.
"Appointments can be made now seven days a week.”
Prices currently start from £389,950 for a four-bedroom home with a garage, and buyers can benefit from the Stamp Duty holiday which became available in July as part of the Chancellor’s Summer Economic Update on a selection of plots.
As well as at the development’s sales centre, homebuyers can also reserve their chosen home using Miller Homes’ online reservation system.
Buyers can reserve a new home and pay a reservation fee via the Miller Homes website in a few simple steps, any time and in a place convenient to them.
For more information and to book an appointment click here or call 03301 733 802.


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Bloomberg: Apple's net income rose 47 percent
Bloomberg is reporting that Apple is helping to drive U.S. corporations to the most-profitable Q4 since Bill Clinton's early days in the White House, when the PowerBook Duo was the latest in subnotebooks (and only weighed a mere 4.1 pounds!)
Of course, this isn't exactly news to us, as Deutsche Bank speculated a couple days ago that holiday Mac and iPad sales were far better than expected. Bloomberg estimates that Apple's net income rose 47 percent to US$4.97 billion during its fiscal first quarter, which ended in December and included those all-important holiday sales.
We'll know exactly how well Apple made out during the company's quarterly earnings call on Jan. 18, with the possibility of a Verizon iPhone announcement just a couple days later.
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A short but illuminating piece from last week’s Loudoun Times-Mirror (fast becoming my favorite local rag) describes the actions “transparency advocates” have taken to shine a light on incentives offered by local governments to Amazon re: its “HQ2” development. This is the sweepstakes Amazon is running as its board decides where to build its second headquarters, somewhere in North America. Will your local government be the one to offer enough from you the taxpayer?
Apparently we’ll never know. According to NoVaSaysNo.com: “Our state and local governments have signed non-disclosure agreements with Amazon, preventing residents from even knowing what is being offered with their tax dollars.”
Loudoun officials declined to answer questions from the Times-Mirror. The “Loudoun County Department of Economic Development” (I’m reaching for my wallet already) gave a bureaucratic response referencing Virginia Code sections eight numbers long.
The best bet at any sunlight on this particular issue is through Freedom of Information requests. Such requests have been submitted by, among others, members of the D.C. Metro chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Democratic Socialists of America.
Shouldn’t they favor something like government support (I’m actually thinking of a nastier word) of business ventures? Anyway, I think it’s the first time I’ve ever found myself on their side.
First time for everything.
You know what they say about politics and bedfellows.


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Pershore College’s GrowAgri Worcestershire project, which aims to promote entrepreneurship in the county’s agri-tech sector, is set to go online in 2021 with the help of a new recruit.
Dr Chris Hatcher, a soils and plant nutrition scientist from Loughborough, has joined the GrowAgri team to develop methods for predicting crop yield and plant health using data obtained from drones.
The use of drone-derived data in agriculture is helping to modernise the way farmers grow our food by making production more efficient. This approach to farm management is based on observing, measuring, and taking action based on real-time crop and livestock data.
Dr Hatcher, who has a doctorate in plant ecology from Loughborough University, will be sharing his expertise as part of a brand new virtual business support programme set to start in the new year which features a range of topics from bioenergy and waste management to space and cyber technology.
Hatcher said: “Remote sensing in horticulture and agriculture is commonplace, but use of UAVs to generate high-resolution imagery that is then used for quantitative modeling is something that is currently underdeveloped in the agri-tech sector.”
“UAV-based remote sensing requires specialty across multiple disciplines. While this is likely the reason it is not more widely used currently, it presents the opportunity for a range of businesses to diversify into new markets and collaborate.
“Our 2021 virtual support programme aims to promote diversification of businesses into the agricultural sector, and also aims to support growers in advancing their methods for growing by incorporating new technologies into their established protocols.”
Starting in January 2021, five expert-led webinars will showcase the cutting-edge technologies that are already being developed in horticulture to revolutionise the way we grow our food by maximising productivity, data collection, precision and efficiency, whilst also benefiting the environment.
The webinars will also highlight the opportunities for Worcestershire-based businesses to be part of the future development of these technologies.
The agri-tech sector is viewed by the Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership as strategically important for the growth of the Worcestershire economy. The GrowAgri project seeks to support those companies that sit outside the traditional agricultural primary production & processing, and support them to grow and innovate within the agri-tech domain.
GrowAgri Project Manager, Mark Harwood-Browne said: “We’re keen to engage with engineers, food technologists, agronomists, systems analysts or anyone who develops technologies that could be transferable across different industrial sectors.
“However, it is also a unique opportunity for Worcestershire enterprises not familiar with the sector to establish key contacts and get an introduction to horticulture and agriculture. Businesses who sign up to our virtual business support programme will get to hear first-hand about the challenges in the agri-tech sector.”
As well as offering a business support programme for eligible Worcestershire-based small and medium sized businesses, GrowAgri has a grant scheme offering funding of £1000 upwards to support Worcestershire enterprises to make capital purchases.
A total grant pot of £160,000 aims to help approximately forty businesses at a forty percent intervention rate, making a total investment of £400,000.